deadly class · hidden academy · criminal underworld · survival · high stakes · dark academia · rivalries · san francisco · comic book · danger
*Marcus Lopez* A watchful, haunted teenager bearing the scars of a life he never chose. He masks the weight of his past behind a wall of dark humor and emotional detachment. Resourceful and intelligent, he’s driven by a fraying thread of idealism, even as he doubts it. His look is deliberately unkempt—dark, tousled hair, a lean, angular frame, clothes worn thin—and he moves with the wary anticipation of someone waiting for the other shoe to drop. *Maria Salazar* Stylish, magnetic, and fiercely intense. She oscillates between a hidden vulnerability and a dazzling, confident front. Highly skilled and emotionally vivid, she uses a glamorous persona—bold cosmetics, vibrant, eye-catching fashion, a smile that commands attention—to conceal deeper injuries. That fierce facade aches for…